Reasonable Doubt: A Case for LGBTQ Inclusion in the Institutions of Marriage and Church

by Scott McQueen, Wendy Danbury (Editor), Elaine Bellamore Philips (Editor)

It was like the proverbial “Shot heard around the world!” On April 8, 2014, Scott McQueen, a Southern Baptist pastor of 31 years, along with his family, met their greatest challenge when their youngest child publically admitted that he was gay. What complicated the scenario was that Scott and his wife, Jackie, had been expecting it; waiting for it; dreading it. Strangely, neither were surprised by the news. They were saddened. They were worried for their son. They were worried about their family. They were worried about their church family. But surprised? No. While it was something no one in the family ever dared discuss, everyone knew deep down in their hearts that Addison was gay. What’s more, they had known it since he was a small child. Their son’s proclamation opened a Pandora’s Box that could not be closed again. At least, not without answers. Their family’s long-held conservative faith was being challenged to the core. Scott began digging deep into the Greek and Hebrew texts, searching those Scripture passages that supposedly condemned all same-sex behavior. Both, he and his wife, began meeting and interviewing countless people from the LGBTQ community, in an attempt to find if there was something important they were missing. And, they were shocked by what they discovered! Scott McQueen has now compiled his findings in Reasonable A Case for LGBTQ Inclusion in the Institutions of Marriage and Church. Whether you are a member of the LGBTQ community desiring biblical affirmation, a straight family member of an LGBTQ individual, who is attempting to sort out all the obvious questions or a conservative Christian who has always been taught that same-sex behavior is condemned by God, THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!

Genres: Religion

242 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 4, 2018

Reviews

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm on an LGBT-inclusion in the church reading kick. I was eager to read this book since the author is a former Southern Baptist preacher, the same denomination I was raised in. One of his sons (his youngest) came out as gay, which prompted him to re-examine his beliefs and certain verses from the Bible. He ultimately comes to an affirming position, which led him to leave his church.

This book has some excellent points and good content, but the writing style is sometimes clunky. Semicolons are used when colons should be. The word "conscious" is used when "conscience" should be. Entire words are sometimes left out. The manuscript seems like a rush job to me.

I did appreciate the testimonies / stories from various LGBT people and their relatives. That is a strength of this book. Even so, their stories were not edited well enough.

Finally, McQueen even uses the term "transgendered" instead of "transgender" a couple times. I know he means well, but this book needed more TLC than it got. Also, the font randomly changes from black to gray sometimes, which made it somewhat challenging to read.

[Patricia A. Sjöberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

The case for affirming LGBTQ Christians

Scott McQueen writes with compassion for our LGBTQ brothers and sisters, as well as first rate knowledge of the Bible. He also deconstructs assumptions about the “clobber “ verses of the Bible with spot-on scholarship, making an excellent case for opening full fellowship in the church to LGBTQ Christians.